A note on being thankfulEvery so often I have some person ask me this question: “Is your glass half empty or half full?” This is just another way of asking if you are basically a positive person or a negative person. I always answer half full, because in the vast majority of cases I try to see the positive or the good in people, or the various circumstances where I have to make choices. These thoughts came to mind when I read a very thought-provoking article a reader...

Luckiest person on EarthThis past Saturday, Dr. Steve Davis gave the message at my mother’s funeral. As pastor of First Baptist Church of Carrollton, Ga., he recounted that, during a recent visit, she told him that she was the luckiest person on earth. Take her circumstances into account: She had endured and beaten both uterine cancer (in the 1970s) and colon cancer (she was given a clean bill of health last month). She had entered a nursing home in 2006, where many ...

Womack, others try to look past labelsThere’s a group starting to make a little headway in Washington called No Labels. Three of Arkansas’ members of Congress are part of it. It would be great if the others would join. No Labels was started by Republicans and Democrats who wanted to reduce the partisanship in Washington with a series of mostly simple ideas, such as the concept that members of Congress shouldn’t get paid unless they pass a budget. To the surprise of a lot of people...

Parole system has had years of problemsProblems with Arkansas’ parole system go back several years, at least to 2009 when an Arkansas parolee shot and killed four police officers in a Washington state coffee shop before being killed in a shootout with law enforcement officers. In that case Maurice Clemmons, serving a 108-year sentence for robbery and other crimes, had been released in 2000 after his sentence was commuted to 47 years by then-Gov. Mike Huckabee, making him immediatel...

GOP of two minds, at least, on immigrationOn immigration, the Republican Party is trapped in two trains of thought, each speeding along the wrong track. At the tea party end, there’s absolute resistance to normalizing the status of illegal immigrants. On the cheap-labor side, there’s this big push to admit as many unskilled immigrants as possible. The first view, that putting millions of illegal immigrants on the path to citizenship rewards lawbreakers, is unhelpful. It is true that t...

3 reforms for the war on drugsEric Holder, America’s first African-American attorney general, and his boss, Barack Obama, the first black president, haven’t been shy about pointing out racial disparities in the criminal justice system. Racial profiling? It’s real, they say. State “stand your ground” laws? Obama says they don’t work for minorities. Yet both have been conspicuously absent when it comes to redressing racial disparities in their own home turf, the federal gove...

Walmart talk ends — time to voteScatter shooting while wondering whatever happened to Jim “Dandy” Mangrum. • • • Editor’s note: Saturday was the last day The Courier will publish letters to the editor about the proposed Walmart Neighborhood Market and the zoning election. The Courier will publish letters following the election discussing the outcome of the vote. After months and months of talking about a proposed new Walmart Neighnorhood Market that could be built in western...

Expanding manufacturing in ArkansasI’ve participated in lots of job announcements as governor. The ones that seem to generate the most buzz and excitement are those that welcome a new business to Arkansas. I certainly understand that feeling. When a new company announces it will invest in our state, it’s a sign of approval and confidence from another part of the country or the world. These are indications of the continued growth of Arkansas’ positive business reputation that we...

Race will put Arkansas center stageIn another era and in different circumstances, this column might have begun with, “No sooner had Rep. Tom Cotton announced that he was running for the U.S. Senate Tuesday than his opponent, Sen. Mark Pryor, began attacking his record.” But Arkansas will be at or near the center of the political universe in 2014, so it happened sooner than that. The Pryor campaign released a statement the week before Cotton’s announcement declaring that Arkansa...

On My WayI grew up in Morrilton and recently moved back there. I like living in a small town while still being pretty close to larger towns like Russellville and Conway. Growing up, I would often come to Russellville on the weekends to eat out, shop, bowl, go to the movies or visit family. Many of my relatives still live in Russellville. So, I was very excited when I got a job reporting for The Courier. My dad always told me, “Find a job you love and y...

Starring in your own ‘Truman Show’?Two weeks ago, I returned from my 10th visit to Cuba. Cubans are friendly and hospitable, but some are like Jim Carrey in “The Truman Show.” In the 1998 movie, Truman Burbank is an unborn, unwanted child adopted by a corporation to star in a unique television show. From birth and even inside the womb before delivery, every moment of Truman’s life for 30 years has been broadcast 24/7 to a global audience. His hometown is a sound stage under a h...

Communities need bookcase projectsIt’s been said, “a new idea is fragile, as it can be killed by a sneer, a yawn or a raised eyebrow on the right person’s forehead.” Personally, I know this is true as I have seen it many times in my more than 40 years as a writer, columnist, speaker and educational consultant. In reality, good ideas only thrive and succeed, first, if they are worthy and, second, if the person who has the idea is so committed they will not take “No” for an answ...

McDaniel free to interpret lawNot running for governor has made Dustin McDaniel a better attorney general. That’s written in response to an opinion issued last week by his office saying that schools cannot be licensed as their own private security firms so they can arm and train selected staff members. I don’t like the opinion. I think schools should be able to decide whether or not to do that, but McDaniel’s job isn’t to decide good policy from bad. It’s to interpret the ...

Service is as service doesThe notion of service surfaces repeatedly in Scripture. For instance, Jesus observed: “No one can serve two masters. You cannot serve both God and Money” (Matt. 6:24). The term translated Money embraces possessions of whatever sort. While possessions can serve a legitimate purpose, they should not be made an end in themselves. It was likely with this in mind that Andrew Carnegie, who advocated the accumulation of wealth, cautioned that a perso...

Another round of newspaper cuts — and a toastIn 1993, during my second day on the job at The Plain Dealer, I noticed a dime taped to the top of a computer I shared with veteran reporter Lou Mio. “What’s that about?” I said, pointing to the coin. Lou smiled and, with a sweep of his hand, gestured to all the other dimes taped on computers throughout the newsroom’s metro department. An editor on the city desk, Lou explained, had said, loudly, two years earlier, “Reporters are a dime a dozen...

School district may go ahead with plan to arm staffAfter initially showing some common sense in reaction to an adverse attorney general’s opinion, Clarksville school officials are apparently going to challenge an interpretation that says the district can’t be licensed as a private security company to train and arm its employees. You’d think the school officials would have sought legal counsel before they embarked on a novel plan to put guns in the hands of a couple dozen teachers and staff mem...

A good month for Mike RossThere’s no way around it. Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mike Ross had an excellent July. The former 4th District congressman is now sitting with a campaign chest full of cash and a clear path to the nomination after his primary rival dropped out of the race. That is remarkable considering only a few months ago Ross was not even a candidate. As 2012 closed, Attorney General Dustin McDaniel was considered the favorite in the Democrats’ plan...

Commissioner talks zoning issueRussellville has an important special election on August 13th to vote on whether to allow a Walmart Neighborhood Market to be built at the corner of West Main Street and South Vancouver Avenue. I serve as one of nine commissioners on the Russellville Planning Commission. The commission studied and deliberated this particular application for months. I thought it might be helpful to the voters to provide some background information on this issue...

Forgotten warThis July 27th marked 60 years since the signing of the Korean Armistice Agreement, essentially ending the Korean War. It is sometimes referred to as “The Forgotten War,” as it was often overshadowed by the more immediate memories of Vietnam, Desert Storm and the 50th anniversary commemorations of World War II. With four-million casualties, however, those who served in Korea certainly have not forgotten their shared experiences on the battlefi...

UACCM offers something for everyoneMORRILTON — The University of Arkansas Community College at Morrilton offers technical, career and transfer degrees as well as adult education and workforce education. The campus draws approximately 2,300 credit students each semester and 1,000 non-credit students each year through workforce training, community education, and adult education programs. Serving six counties in Central Arkansas, UACCM is a vibrant commuter campus with ample parki...